Lellia was resting alone after her grandfather had come and gone.
The maids were supposed to arrive a little later.
So, though there wasn't much to do, she started organizing her things first.
She placed her most treasured possession, a rabbit doll, on the bed, and tucked the pocket watch inside the music box her grandfather had given her.
She also set the health recovery potion she had taken out from her item inventory on the table.
Her heart swelled with contentment.
She wondered if it was really okay to live this safely and happily.
'They say suffering ends and joy comes....'
Lellia savored the happiness for a moment, then touched the gemstone on her necklace to bring up the 'Alchemy Lottery' screen.
As if greeting her, the alchemy tool spoke through a speech bubble.
[system : Optimization will proceed to match the new environment.]
[Optimization in progress! New recipes are scheduled to be added to match the environment. ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و ]
It seemed that new recipes were added each time she moved to a different region.
'I don't understand what principle this works on.'
In the original game, dragons had traveled the world searching for materials. That system seemed to have been applied to reality.
Lellia examined the list of added recipes.
'If there are too many recipes, I'll never be able to make the Philosopher's Stone....'
The Philosopher's Stone could only be created after clearing every single recipe.
'Since it does seem to grant wishes properly, though....'
If she failed to obtain the original male lead's holy artifact, there was also a way to break the curse of the prophecy using this Philosopher's Stone.
But it was hard to gauge which would be easier.
'Still, I've obtained half of it, so wouldn't finding the remaining pocket watch be easier?'
Lellia made a humming sound as she surveyed the list.
The newly appeared list was filled with magic potions of unknown用途.
Earthworm plague cure, turnip fertilizer, reconciliation elixir, lamp of truth and falsehood, and so on. All sorts of things were there.
Among them were some truly strange ones.
'Wait, what is this? Game addiction prevention medicine?'
She felt unnecessarily pricked by that.
Perhaps because it was a game she had played in her previous life, modern words from that world occasionally appeared.
Lellia frowned as she casually scrolled through the strange list. That was when it happened.
'Huh? Wait a minute!'
Lellia's hand stopped at a certain point.
[Alzheimer's Treatment]
'Alzheimer's? Could it be...!'
Lellia checked the ingredients for the recipe. The unopened ingredients were marked with question marks and gray coloring.
'Hmm....'
On her way to Superion territory, Lellia had found quite a few materials through the automatic material-finding function.
But there were still more materials she hadn't found.
'With this medicine, I might be able to cure Grandmother.'
Lellia read the names of the ingredients with hope.
"Beauty grass 99, memory fragments 10 pieces, old fabric pieces... and so on. What? Why are there so many?"
Lellia narrowed her eyes and returned to the main screen.
[♪┏(・o･)┛Optimization♪┗( ･o･) ┓♪in progress~!]
That was when it happened.
Knock knock.
A knock that seemed to carry some emotion could be heard. She was certain it wasn't a maid.
Lellia quickly pressed the gemstone on her necklace to dismiss the screen.
The one who opened the door and entered was indeed not a maid. It was Carius.
The moment she saw his face, Lellia's body tensed with nervousness.
"......"
As if he didn't need permission, Carius walked steadily into the room and approached Lellia, who was sitting in the space arranged like a living room.
Then he flopped down across from her. His cold gaze swept over the items placed on the table.
"What is this?"
He asked with a face full of hostility. Having already been scolded by the Duke, he didn't seem able to get too angry.
What he was pointing at was the health recovery potion Lellia had prepared. Inside the small glass bottle was a clear red syrup.
"That's a health recovery potion."
"....Ha!"
Carius laughed in disbelief.
"You little swindler, do you know that making these kinds of magic potions is illegal?"
"......"
Lellia looked at him with an expression that said she was a bit scared, but so what are you going to do about it.
Since Grandfather had given his permission, Carius couldn't kick her out anyway.
Seeing that look in her eyes, Carius was thoroughly exasperated. After suppressing his anger for a moment, he asked.
"You little swindler, do you know how to do alchemy?"
"......"
Lellia closed her mouth.
That question, phrased differently, could also mean 'Are you a heretic? Do you want to be caught by the Temple and burned at the stake?'
It was clearly a question meant to intimidate her. But Lellia wasn't particularly scared.
As was obvious, the most powerful person in the Superion family was the Duke.
Since Grandfather believed her words and had personally given her this room, there was nothing to be timid about.
Moreover, contrary to Carius's words, Lellia was not a swindler.
Also, during the journey from the Imperial Capital to the territory, Lellia's anxious psychological state had become much more stable.
For Lellia, the Imperial Capital was a source of anxiety.
A place without the friends she had relied on, and a place where she might die at any moment like in the original story.
Also the existence of Emperor Perseus and the twin brothers themselves. Everything was a source of anxiety.
Of course, there was her mother's cabin, but that too wasn't a place where Lellia could rest peacefully.
There she had met Carius and experienced a great shock, and because of that incident, Emperor Perseus had even threatened Lellia.
All those factors made Lellia withdrawn and passive.
So after returning to her home country, unlike when she stayed at the Temple, she became cautious, sensitive, and fearful like a young child.
However, though it was a short time, on the way here, Lellia had become close with the knights of the Superion family and had received abundant affection from her grandfather.
Moreover, today she had finally gained a sanctuary she could truly consider 'safe.' Thanks to that, Lellia regained her former boldness.
Lellia looked at Carius with confident eyes filled with that boldness.
"......"
However, that gaze deeply irritated Carius's temper. At the same time, he was also bewildered.
It was completely different from the eyes she had when they met at the cabin in the Imperial Capital forest.
Back then, Lellia had eyes so fragile and pitiful that Carius felt a strange sense of guilt when he got angry at her.
Regardless of whether Carius was bewildered or not, Lellia finished her contemplation and spoke.
"Yes, I do know alchemy."
"...You!"
Lellia shrugged her shoulders. So what are you going to do about it?
Alchemy was a branch of magic that the Temple had clearly designated as heresy.
The Temple always showed quite sensitive reactions to alchemy. They considered those who practiced it as heretics challenging God's authority, tracked them down, and burned them at the stake.
However, in recent years, the situation was a bit different.
Signs of the Mad Dragon awakening had appeared, and everyone born and raised on the Drakanea continent had their attention focused on that.
'The Temple doesn't have time to leisurely hunt alchemists like before.'
The Temple would be busier than anyone because of the Mad Dragon.
They intended to use this opportunity as a stepping stone to once again impress upon the Five Empires the gravity of the sacred oath, and based on that, to further expand their influence.
In the original story as well, after the Mad Dragon died, the Temple began to involve itself more deeply in the Five Empires.
The conclusion was 'I'm an alchemist, so what about it?'
In any empire, high-ranking nobles secretly employed alchemists.
Wherever people lived, there were bound to be those who dabbled in such things.
Moreover, the Duke had said so too.
He said he had met many alchemists to cure his wife.
She understood Carius's intention to try to threaten her, but Lellia had no intention of meekly going along with it.
"......"
Carius was exasperated seeing Lellia's attitude, which was brazen to boot.
On one hand, he was seized by a strange thought.
'...Could it be. Is she really my sister's daughter.'
The deceased Elizabeth was a mage, but strangely, she had a lot of interest in alchemy.
Carius had been very displeased with that fact. He had been constantly worried that his precious sister might be caught by the Temple and meet some harm.
'No, that can't be.'
Honestly speaking, he had come now to warn her.
That she had deceived Father quite well with her scamming, but he would absolutely not be fooled.
But upon discovering an unexpected commonality with his sister, he was left speechless.
"And don't call me a swindler. I'm not a swindler."
"...What, what?"
"You don't have to believe me. Grandfather believes in me anyway."
"......"
Seeing Lellia speak so clearly, Carius was even more at a loss for words.
In the end, with a sour expression, he left the room without having gained anything.
Carius narrowed his eyes and glared at the closed door. Somehow, he felt frustrated.